Shoe platform beveling machine



June, 1948. A, J, GERMAIN 2,442,490

SHOE PLATFORM BEVELING MACHINE June 1, 194s.

A. J. GERMAIN SHOE PLATFORM BEVELING MACHINE Filed July 51, 194e 5Sheets-Sheet 2 June l, 1948 A. J. GERMAIN 2,442,490

SHOE PLATFORM BEVELING MACHINE Filed July 31. 1945 :s sheets-'sheet s yfl W Patented June 1, 1948 attrarre`v snor: marrow BEVEIJNQ MAQHINE..

a erroratien OfMaSSaehufsefte Application J uit'Y 31, 1946, Seriallo:@847,395

12 Claims.

This invention pertains to the manufacture of slio'esffA the 'so-called?"platform or California t e,"`an"d inore'particularlvtoa machine for'beveli'n'g' the 'rear en'd of a forpart'platform preparatory to itsincorporation inthe shoe, the present invention relatii`g` toimprovements in the apparatus 'disclosed' inv the' depending applicationAof Hubert a." emitir-'serial No; 668.540, nieu May 19,1946;v

vThe platform, mid-sole or cushion member of a platform' shoe'customarily terniinatesat the shankoi' adjacent tothe' heel breast'li'rie When the shoe is to'have ahigh heel, Vthe forepart` platformbeing made from stock of substantially uniform thickness While' the heelusually var'ies'in height 'and may be considerably thicker than theforepart cr`platforniproper. `Where the platformV meets the heel itis'desirable'. to'provi'de an overlap offthese 'parts 'and to this endthe platformis customarily beveled. to fit. the forward ed'ge of. theheel Whichis complementally beveled. The platform may be of,substantialthicknesa for instance, upito threerquart'ersio tan inchvor` more, and is usuallymade offwo'od, sheet. cork, felt or the like.I-Ie'retofore` the. bevelingi of: the, rearA end off the platform has,been done by hand, andsince the 'material of. the platform` is`resistant to cutting, by reason. of; its hardness or resilientnaturje,this hand operation. is slowlandflaborious andcan n-ot be depended uponto produce uniformlesults,

The principal object. of theinvention iste provideimproved work-holdingmeans for positioning the platform and holding it, securely at theproperangle for presentation toa beveling cutter orlknife. A furtherobject, isto provide workholding. meansfor, use in a, power .drivenmachine and. operative securely te` grip andto hold the Work evenvthough, the material. be of a nature which isdiicult. to out. A, furtherobject is to provide Work-holding means i. Simplified. C011- structionkand which is easy to actuate both in securing thework, in position andin releasing it. otherandfurther objects and advantages 'ef theinvention will; be pointed 'Out in GhafOllOWing more detaileddescriptionl and byreference tothe accompanying crawugSilvllelerl Eig.l.V is a frontL elevation` of. a povver driven machine equipped with theWork-holding means ofthepresent-inveeiien;

Eig- 2 is a Plan View effthe meme@ Of. Fie 1 with parts broken ayvay;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary elevation showing the lefi'i-hand` side of theimproved Work-holding means of the present. invention with the parts in'the position which they. occupy While the 22 work-holding means isbeing engaged with the vfork-'. ucv. v

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary elevation, to larger scale'than Eig. 3,'vsho'wirng'the rightrhandrside of the' holding' device; thewdrkesup'orting plate being broken away in part;

V4Fig.' `5 is" anfelevati'on showing the leftrhand sidsf'of' the`pin'cariyrig:'s1'idesof the Workiiol'ding'device arid showingtheactuating cam inra'die'ilsection;m

`Fig s asection substantially on the line 6 6 ofFiAi;

Figf'l'is a 'section substantially on the line l-- of Fig; 2;sh'ovvin'g'a 'platform heldin'pcsition in readiness t'obe beveled.

Referring to the drawings, the numerall (Fig. 1). designates thebaseofthe. machine, Which may be a4` castingand which has integral.upstandin'g p'ost's Ziand Bnea'rts right-hand edge. The base also hasanupstanding supporting column i (Figs. 1.an`d 2)substantiallymidway,between its front and rear edges andvvhlch ishorizontally elongate' transverselyof. the b ase and which is provided.atits .upperpartrwitha horizontal bearing for the; saw. shafthereinafter-described..

The posts` Zjand 3v have vertical axial bores which; receive the:vertically adjustable lees,Y and respectively. Theselees. maybe held invadr usted position by, any Suitable meausffer exam;- ple, set screvvs,'Iheupper endsof these legs 5 6, are4 hired. in socketsinb-osses 'lprojecting downwardly fromy the underside eff the table 9- This tablehase substauellya, and horizontal upper surface 1.0 and isrrevidedwith adQYetal slot Ihl extending :fromV its rear, edge l2 `to its forward',edge 1.2%, The table. has a, Substantially vertical andsiaeethli"finished, reetiluearlefthand edge l@ exteudnafrom the, fear,edge l2 to the point i3, thisedge being clos/ely adjacent t'o the planeof action'of4 the cutter blade. Forvvardly 'of'the point [3 the table iswidened to provide the' extension' I5 which supports the work-clampingdevice.

L"This Work-'clamping device'comprises a hori- '1 aprende;,'wien'pa'raim eiong'ate rece Shanks. which e; tension le the` tablSemitism/ing; threaded tei-thy@ eedopeiiiegs in' deeg;

The' member" |15', ie-tbls i 0f. *2litaill and may be nxedin adjustedpositiv g The 'clamping device also comprises thefwcrl; pressing plate;le which is hinged to the nieiber I6` at 2!) to' turn about a horizontalagis. The plate l isv of spinerigidr maaar @aaneaaa are @da e its upperedge with a handle 2|, by means of which it may be swung about the hingeaxis.

The work-supporting carriage comprises a rigid bottom plate 25 designedto rest on and to slide longitudinally of the table 9. This bottom plate25 is provided with a downwardly directed key member 29 (Fig. 1) whichts and slides in the dove-tail slot of the table. A work-supportingplate 29 is hinged to the bottom plate 25 at 21 to swing about ahorizontal axis extending longitudinally of the table. The axes aboutwhich the plates i9 and 29 swing are relatively adjusted so that theyare spaced apart a distance approximately equal to the thickness of theworkpiece and are located at opposite sides of the plane of action ofthe cutter. The plate 29 is of rigid material, for example metal, andhas a smooth flat upper or left-hand surface for engagement with thework. In order that the shoe platforms may be beveled to any of theangles required by the industry, the supporting plate 29 is desirablyarranged, as here shown. to swing from a vertical position, where it isparallel to the plane of the cutting blade, through an arc of the orderof 45 or more.

A screw 39 (Fig. 1) passes through an elongate slot 3| in a lever 32pivoted at 33 to a bracket 34 mounted on the carriage 25. The screw 36has threaded engagement with an opening in a bracket 35 xed to the rearedge of the rear plate 29 near the top of the latter. By means of thisscrew 36, the plate 29 may be xed at any desired angle of inclination tothe plane of the table top.

The plate 29 has four rigid guides 35, 36; 31,36 (Fig. 6) projectingfrom its under or right-hand side (Fig. 1) and arranged in the samevertical plane substantially mid-way between the front and rear edges ofthe plate 29. The guides 35, 39 are parallel and spaced apart and slopeupwardly and to the right, as viewed in Fig. 6. The guides 31, 38 areparallel and spaced apart and slope downwardly and to the right asviewed in Fig. 6.

Two vertically slidable pin-carrying plates 39 and 49 are arranged atthe right-hand or underside of the work-supporting plate 29. Theseplates have inclined bores 4|, 42; 43, 44 (Fig. 5) for the reception ofthe guides 35, 36; and 31, 33. Interposed between the adjacent ends ofthe plates 39 and 49 is an axially elongate actuating cam 45 (Fig. 6).This cam is mounted to turn on a stub shaft 46a carried by the plate 29and has an actuating handle 46 by means of which it may be turned. Whenthis cam is turned a quarter turn from the position shown in Fig. 5, theplates 39 and 49 are thereby pushed apart to the maximum extent. In thusmoving apart, the plates are constrained by the guides 35, 36; 31, 38 tomove to the right, as viewed in Fig. 6. from the inactive, broken lineposition to the full line position where the plates 39 and 46 are insubstantial contact with the underside of the plate 29.

The plates 39 and 40 are provided with vertical rows of sharp ,pointedpins or claw-s, the pins carried by the plate 39 being designated by thenumeral 41, and those carried by the plate 49 by the numeral 48. Asshown in Fig. 6, the pins 41 are straight and sloped upwardly and to theright, being parallel to the guides 35, 39, while the pins 48 arelikewise straight and slope downwardly and to the right, being parallelto the guides 31, 38.

The plate 29 is provided with guide bores for the several pins 41 and48. These bores are properly 'sloped to permit the pins to slide (as theplates 39 and 40 move toward or from the plate 29). Preferably the guidebores for the pins 41 and 48 are of such dimensions as to receive thepins with a, free sliding fit. However, it is contemplated that insteadof individual bores for the several pins the plate 29 may have avertical slot corresponding to each row of pins and which receives allof the pins of a given row.

The pins 41 and 48 are of such length and so arranged that when theplates 39 and 40 occupy the broken line positions shown in Fig. 6 thepoints of the pins are retracted within the substance of the plate 29,but when the plates 39 and 49 are positioned against the plate 29, thepoints of the pins project beyond the upper or work contacting surfaceof the latter.

Springs 49 and 5D urge the plates 39 and 40 toward each other and thuskeep them in contact with the cam45. The work-supporting plate 29 ispreferably provided with a handle 5| (Fig. 2) projecting from its upperedge for convenience in adjusting it to the desired inclination and alsoto facilitate the operation of the clamping plate i9 as hereinafterdescribed.

The bearing in the upper part of the support Il of the base is designedto receive a rotary saw shaft 59 having the drive pulley 51 at itslefthand end and which is designed to receive a power driven belt. Theopposite end of the shaft is provided with means for attaching thereto adisk cutter, here shown as a circular saw blade E8. The parts are soarranged that the plane of this disk cutter is disposed very close tobut out of contact with the finished vertical edge I4 of the table 9,the cutting edge being disposed rearwardly of the extension I5 of thetable.

A shoe platform as above described is customarily made from stock ofsubstantially uniform thickness; for instance, soft wood, felt, sheetcork or the like. 'I'he platform is died out from this material by asuitably shaped die so as to give it the desired peripheral contour, therear edge of this blank, embryo platform, or workpiece thus producedusually being substantially straight. The rear edge portion of thisworkpiece or blank is of the same thickness as the remainder of theblank, and the purpose oi?l the present apparatus is to form a, bevel atthe rear edge of this workpiece or blank.

Preparatory to the operation of the machine, the work-supporting member29 is adjusted to an angle relatively to the plane of the upper surfaceI6 of the table 9 which is the complement of the desired angle of bevel,this adjustment being accomplished by loosening the nut 30 and swingingthe plate 29 by means of the handle 5| to the desired position and thenagain tightening the screw 30. Assuming that the carriage is at thefront of the machine and that the Worksupport 29 has been adjusted tothe proper angle, the operator swings the handle 2| so as to turn theclamping member |'9 outwardly to the left, away from the member 29 tosome such position as shown in Fig. 1. He then places the workpiece P(Fig. '7) against the upper or left-hand surface of the member 29 withits lower edge approximately in the plane of the table top |0. Theclamping member |9 does not move with the carriage. The lower edges ofthe parts I9 and 29 are spaced and so located that when the workpiece isoperatively positioned its lower edge is in the plane of the cuttingblade. The operator swings the handle 2| to the right, as viewed in Fig.l, thus pressing the workpiece firmly against the left-hand or upperface of the support 29.

When `the clampingplate-l 9;has,.thusbeen;posif tioned, theoperator.=mayrgripboth1of the handles 21 .and `:5i inhis .left hand-ratthe. Sametime, and bytexertngea squeezingfongripping: pressureeuponthese handles he may .very firmlypress thework: piece y between .therplates:` l 9;;and 3295 Wl'iiia thus holding. the. handles 2| ,and'l with`his left hand; the.- operator swings the handle. ll3\vith-.his righthand; thus :turning the cam .45 so as .to .moveithe plates 29and Sittinoppositedirections- The/:pins t1 and .48- Y arefthus L projected:through the guide openingsin thel plate. 29.1and into the. substance of'the workpiece .Pg which -is iirmlyssupportedffin opposition tothethrust'oftne pinstbytherigid plate I9 overlyingl it.. Sineeithespinslcarried.; by theplates 39 Land-4i);L respectively, slope-.in oppsite-directions theylthave ya clawfaction, exerting a. talon-like.Y gripupon the vworkpiece when pro-l jected into thelatter, thus` firmlyholding the workpiece tothe-support29 Ifheoperator now releases theclamping-plate, I9 andA preferably swings it to the left and-awayfromtheplate 29; thus fully exposing the upper surface of the .workpieceso that the operator hask a clean view-oi theworkpiece during thecuttingoperation lThe operator now pushes the carriagegZS rearwardly,While leaving thehandle 4Sf1inthe-position to which it has-beenmoved,`and as` the -carriag-eis moved rearwardly theblade 53 passesthrough--theentire .width of the workpiece P, thus' s licingcff atriangularblock atVthe low-er corner ofJ the workpiece. and providingthe desiredbevel. Thecarriage isnow Vreturnedtothe frontci' thenaachine and the handlee'lisrestored to its initial position, thus retracting the pins from theworkpieceA and freeing' the latter' for removal;A from the supportingplate 29; If preferred, the workpiece maybe releasedfrom the plate 2Sbefore the carriage is returned to the front of the machine. y to otherangles, the angle of the bevel will be correspondingly changed, It isthus. possible to bevel the platform to correspondtto, any typa of heeland to obtain substantiallyuniform results without requiring anyparticular skill or care on the part of the operator.

By reason of the firm talon-like grip-orV claw action which theV pinsprovideythe workpiece is very rmlyheldto the support 28 withoutrequiring any effort on the part of the operator to hold it in placeduring the actual cutting operation; thus it is not nece-ssary for theoperator to lean over the saw during the beveling operation, nor isthere any danger that the workpiece will slip during the operation byreason of any failure of the operator to exert the necessary pressure orforce to keep the workpiece in place.

Moreover, by reason of this novel means of attaching the workpiece tothe support, it is possible to operate upon workpieces of any desiredshape or material which may be employed for making a shoe platform withthe assurance that the workpiece will be properly held at the desiredposition and angle for the beveling operation.

While one desirable embodiment of the invention has been illustrated byway of example, it is to be understood that the invention is broadlyinclusive of any and all modifications falling Within the scope of theappended claims.

I claim:

l. Apparatus for use in beveling the rear edge of a shoe platform, saidapparatus comprising a rotary disk cutter, a carriage movable in a pathparallel to the plane of the cutter, an adjustable Obviously byadjusting, the support Z9 uorkfsuprprtlfmountedfoptthe;Carragetolswaaaboutlan-.aXS;paral1lt0-tl1erathof the Carriage, work-attaching elementscarried by the work support. andcain means. operativa to engage Seidelements with the, workpiece.

2.: Apparatus for use. in .beveline the rear edge uffa-,shoe platform,said apparatus comprising arotary diskutter, a carriageY movable inapath narallclztctnefpane cf theA cutter, a support mounted mi thecarriage, means operative tem,- porarily. to. clamp a, workrziecev .tothe support-l work@attachingv elements carried by the. support,andfmeans for. operatively engaging saidattaching. elements withtheworkpiece Vwhile the latter is temporarily clamped to the support.

3; Apparatusfor. use in beveling the rear. edge ofe'a shoeplatform,saidapparatus comprising a cutter, a carriage movable in apath paralleltotheplane of action of the cutter, a, work support mountedzon thecarriage, a: clamping., plate operative, to hold a workpiece temporarilyin firm engagementY with the support, work-penetrating attachingelements having points normally housedwithinthe substance of thesupport,- and means for. projecting said pointsiinto a workpieceheldgbetween the clamping plate. and the support.

4. Apparatus for use in beveling the. rearedge of a shoe platform, said.apparatusA comprising a cutter,r a carriage movable in a path parallelto the planeof action, of. the cutter, a Work support mounted on thecarriage, the support having aplurality of guide bores therein,worklattaching claws.slidabiain-saidvbores, andl means operativesimultaneously to, advanceA said claw-s into holdingrelation to aworkpiece on theA support.

5l Apparatusrforuse in bev-cling the rear edge of shoe` platform, saidapparatus comprising rotary. disk cutter; a carriage movable in a pathparallel'to the planeof the cutter, `a work support mounted onthecarriage, the support having aplurality of guide bores therein, twosets ot attachingy pins disposed to slide in said bores. one set ofvpins beinginclined oppositely to those. ofthe other set, and meansoperative toadvance all of4 said into a workpiece mann-tedV on thesupport;

6: Apparatus for use in bevelingthe rear edge ef' a Se@ mathrm, Said:artefatti-S. @Surprising aV cutter,4 a carriage movable in a pathparallel to the pla-ne oiaction of the cutter, a work support mounted onthe carriage, the support having a plurality of apertures therein,inclined guides iixed to the support, pin-carrying plates slidableparallel to said support, said plates having bores which receive saidguides, said plates carrying attaching pins which extend through theapertures in the support, and means operative to move the plates inopposite directions, to cause them to move toward the support andthereby protrude the attaching pins into a workpiece mounted on thesupport.

'7. Apparatus for use in beveling the rear edge of a shoe platform, saidapparatus comprising a rotary disk cutter, a carriage movable in a pathparallel to the plane of the cutter, a work support mounted on thecarriage, the support having two sets of guide apertures therein, a setof work-attaching pins disposed in each respective set of apertures, twoplates parallel to the support, each plate carrying one of said sets ofpins, respectively, means so guiding the plates that force applied tothe plates in a direction parallel to the support causes them to movebodily toward and from the support, a cam operative to apply such forceto the plates thereby to separate them, and springs urging the platestoward each other.

8. Apparatus for use in beveling shoe platforms comprising a stationarytable, a rotary disk cutter, a carriage supported by the table, meansguiding the carriage to move in a path parallel to the plane of thecutter, a work support hinged to the carriage to swing about an axisparallel to the path of the carriage, work-attaching claws carried bythe support, means for projecting the claws into a workpiece restingupon the support, and means operative to hold the workpiece against thesupport while the claws are being engaged with the workpiece.

9. Apparatus for use in beveling shoe platforms comprising a stationarytable, a cutter, a carriage supported by the table, means guiding thecarriage to move in a path parallel to the plane of action of thecutter, a work support mounted on the carriage, two series of oppositelyinclined attaching pins arranged to slide in corresponding bores in thesupport, means operative simultaneously to project the pins of the twosets into a workpiece resting on the support, and means operative tohold the workpiece in iirm engagement with the support while the pinsare being engaged with the workpiece.

10. Apparatus for use in beveling shoe platforms comprising a stationarytable, a rotary disk cutter, a carriage supported by the table, meansguiding the carriage to move in a path parallel to the plane of thecutter, an adjustable work support hinged to the :carriage to swingabout an axis parallel to the path of the carriage, a work-clampingmember arranged to swing about an axis parallel to that about which thesupport swings, said axes being disposed, respectively, at oppositesides of the plane of the cutter blade and being spaced apart a distanceapproximating the thickness ofthe workpiece, the clamping means andsupport having handles which are juxtaposed when the vclamping means isin operative position so that they may both be grasped by the operatorshand and urged toward each other, work-attaching means carried by thesupport, and means for operatively engaging sai-d attaching means with aworkpiece held between the clamping member and support.

11. Apparatus for use in beveling shoe platforms comprising a stationarytable, a rotary disk cutter, a carriage supported by the table, meansguiding the carriage to move in a path parallel to the plane of thecutter, an adjustable work support hinged to the carriage to swing aboutan axis parallel to the path of the carriage, a workclamping memberarranged to swing about an axis parallel to that about which the supportswings, said axes being disposed, respectively, at opposite sides of theplane of the cutter blade, means whereby the clamping member may beurged toward the support by the use of one hand, and means actuable bythe other hand for attaching the workpiece to the support.

12. Apparatus for use in beveling shoe platforms comprising a stationarytable, a rotary disk cutter, a carriage supported by the table, meansguiding the carriage to move in a path parallel to the plane of thecutter, an adjustable work supyport hinged to the carriage to swingabout an axis parallel to the path of the carriage, a workclampingmember arranged to swing about an axis parallel to that about which thesupport swings, said axes being disposed, respectively, at oppositesides of the plane of the cutter blade, handles projecting from theupper parts of the clamping member and support, respectively, saidhandles being so relatively disposed, when the clamping member is inoperative position, that they may be grasped in one hand and urgedtoward each other` by the grip of the hand, thereby iirmly holding aworkpiece interposed between the clamping member and support,work-attaching claws arranged to project through openings in the supportand into the workpiece, a cam for projecting the claws, and a handleactuable by the other hand of the operator for operating the cam.

ALBERT J. GERMAIN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,272,934 Fow et al July 16, 19181,400,698 Stiles Dec. 20, 1921 2,004,602 Folk June 11, 1935

